Edited by S.T. Joshi

Back Cover Text

The Cthulhu Mythos is H.P. Lovecraft’s most dynamic invention. His bold vision of a cosmos
filled with baleful “gods,” forbidden books of occult lore, and a constellation of
richly imagined New England cities was the perfect vehicle to express his “cosmic
indifferentism.” The Mythos has become one of the most imitated tropes in horror
literature, and hundreds of writers have made their own extrapolations on it.

But many misconceptions remain about the Cthulhu Mythos. Its very name was not invented by
Lovecraft, but by his disciple August Derleth. Derleth altered the Mythos in significant ways,
and it is only recently that scholars and writers have returned to the purity of
Lovecraft’s own vision.

This collection of essays, gathered by pre-eminent Lovecraft scholar S.T. Joshi (Black
Wings, The Rise and Fall of the Cthulhu Mythos, I Am Providence: The Life and
Times of H.P. Lovecraft) prints many of the seminal essays on the Cthulhu Mythos, ranging
from pioneering articles by Richard L. Tierney and Dirk W. Mosig that strip away Derleth’s
misconceptions about Lovecraft’s pseudomythology, to penetrating studies by Robert M.
Price, Will Murray, Steven J. Mariconda, and others probing key elements of the Mythos—its
use of gods, books, and topography; the influences that Lovecraft absorbed in fashioning it; and
its wide dissemination by generations of later writers. All told, this book provides an
invaluable guide to Lovecraft’s most intriguing but most misunderstood creation.

Contents

Introduction by S.T. JoshiI. Some Overviews

The Derleth Mythos by Richard L. Tierney

H. P. Lovecraft: Myth-Maker by Dirk W. Mosig

Who Needs the “Cthulhu Mythos”? by David E. Schultz

Lovecraft Waits Dreaming by Simon MacCulloch

The Cthulhu Mythos: Lovecraft vs. Derleth by S. T. Joshi

Toward a Reader-Response Approach to the Lovecraft Mythos by Steven J. Mariconda